And You Hold My Fate
by OhMyMuffin
Summary: Eiko has lived in Konoha for many years with a few close friends and her family. When she meets team 7 one day life seems to change completely, and she has no grasp on it anymore. Fate is what controls her now, what will come next?
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1:

Eiko could recall the conversation she and her teammates had listened to earlier:

"_Yo." Their sensei said, appearing a poof of smoke on the tree behind them. "I have a meeting with the Hokage today so I left Ryoichi in charge of you. Ja ne!" And before Akako could even groan, Nozomi disappeared. Then, an hour later, Eiko's brother, Ryoichi appeared in the same fashion as their teacher. "Hello my little, wonderful pupils for the next hour and a half! And hello little sister!" The way he talked he could've woken up all of Konoha. Midori had a sour expression on her face._

"_Why are you doing this Ryoi-nii-san?" She asked. Everyone on the team looked up to him as an older brother. In return he embarrassed us claiming it was his 'job'. _

Now they stood against the fence of one of the training grounds. Eiko couldn't remember the exact number but she figured it was two or something. "You are entering another year as ninja! Today, since your KAWAII but irresponsible sensei couldn't make it, I will be the one testing you on your survival exercise." Ryoichi marched in front of them like a general.

_Survival…exercises?_Midori could only groan more. More of those would be pointless, they had already graduated.

"Yosh! Let's do our best Mi-nee-chan, Eiko-chan!" Her sister, Akako, jumped in her spot with excitement. The four walked into the training ground, Ryoichi at the lead. "I've decided that your exercise will be you-" He was interrupted by a loud, obnoxious voice. "Alright, let's fight man to man!" To their right was a small forest. Peeking through the bushes, heads popped out slightly, they looked inside the clearing. A blond knucklehead looking kid was facing a jounin. "He looks like an idiot." Akako held back a laugh.

They sat there for an hour until a random ring went off, like a timer. "Let's go say hi!" She said walking forward. Grabbing her before she could move, Midori sat her sister back down. They were surprised to see Ryoichi get up and out of the bushes and walk to the man. "Kakashi-chan! Hey, Kakashi-chan!" The man with gravity defying hair looked up from where he stood, in front of three wooden poles. Tied to the center one was the blond haired kid from earlier. Two other people sat next to him.

"You know them Ryoi-nii-san?" Midori asked in her soft voice. He nodded in response and did the unthinkable-well to people who didn't know him. Ryoi ran and glomped the man called Kakashi. "And these must be the FABULOUS students you told me about, did they fail too?"

"No."

"-because I know how you are with never passing people but really you should give them a chance to-THEY PASSED?!" He gasped and looked at the children. They didn't look all that special. A brooding, sadistic kid, a knucklehead, and a pink haired kunoichi who seemed to lack brains. He leered at Kakashi, "What's so special about these brats?"

"…"

"Nii-san, I don't think it's nice to call the rookies brats." "Hm…you're quite right Eiko-chan, but when have I really been the nice type?" She glared at Ryoi. "Ryoi, since when have you had a team?" He turned to Kakashi and gave a big grin that was so much like him. "Haha! This is my superb team! Are you jealous yet Kakashi-chan?" While Ryoi continued to batter Kakashi, and Midori explain they weren't his team, Eiko went and sat down next to Akako. She was talking to the other team.

"Ne, ne, ne Eiko-chan, come sit here. This is Naruto-chan, Sakura-chan, and Sasuke-chan." She pointed to each as she said them. Sakura seemed to glare at her when her gaze lingered at Sasuke. It was hard not to, but no it wasn't because he was 'hot'. His aura made her feel so insignificant it was either that or the sun playing tricks on her mind. "Eiko-chan! Wake up" She felt Akako shaking her shoulders, when her mind came to everything looked a little fuzzy.

"Let's get something to eat, ne?" "Good idea Akako-chan!" Ryoi came over and placed a careful hand on his sister's shoulder.

"Ichiraku time!" "Naruto!" Sakura smacked him upside the head and crossed her arms, "We've been eating ramen all the time. Let's go get something else to eat." She turned towards Sasuke and batted her eyelashes, "Right Sasuke-kun, where do you want to go?"

"Hn." Eiko decided that they were an amusing trio to watch. "Naru-chan, I know the best place to go!" Akako immediately butted in, grabbed Naruto's hand, and ran like dogs were on her heels. Midori sighed, "I'll meet you guys there." Unfolding the fans from her sides, she did a sweeping motion, and disappeared. Sasuke looked at her spot surprised but not showing any notion of interest. "If you're interested in how she did that I could tell you, for a price." He looked up to see the last teammate standing there, her uniquely colored hair shining in the sun. On her back was a long wooden stick with a gem placed on the top, in the center.

"Hn."

"Well you're no fun." Sasuke walked off in the direction Akako had run. Behind her, Eiko could feel an extreme emotion. It reminded her of someone repeatedly stabbing a spider. Sakura continued to glare. "Ja ne Sakura-chan!" Like Midori, Eiko pulled the staff off of her back and in a sweeping motion, disappeared.

When she reappeared she knew exactly where Akako had headed. The truth behind her jutsu was that in fact it wasn't a jutsu, but came because of her clan. _Banpaia…_it translated into vampire. In her academy years many girls and boys teased her. She met Midori, however, and they became best friends. Still, she had no idea how Midori did her jutsu. "Speaking of her…Midori!" The two sisters sat in a booth at the restaurant. She walked inside and sat down next to them. Naruto sat opposite. A little while later Ryoi, Kakashi, Sasuke, and Sakura came and sat down with their respected teams. "Who's their real sensei?" The waiter came and took the orders; Akako took one glance at him and dismissed him. Sakura and Eiko on the other hand could feel their eyes wandering to him.

From the kitchen they could hear a loud noise and the banging of pots. "I'm back! Eh? How'd I land in the kitchen?" "Kakashi-san, is that you?" Nozomi walked out of the kitchen, ran over and sat by him. "Kakashi-saaaaaaaaaaaan!" She sung. Midori turned to Eiko, "She's probably drunk." Ryoichi did a mushroom sigh. "This is their sensei."

The three genin could feel the headache beginning to form, one that only came when their sensei had, had a little too much sake. Once the food had arrived it became quiet with the exception of a chorus of, "Itadakimasu." Naruto slurped his noodles while Sakura munched quietly on her dish. "So," Eiko leaned forward, "Who is the top rookie in your year?" "Huh?" Naruto questioned.

"We already graduated last year and the top male rookie in our year was Hyuuga, Neji. Who was yours?" Midori explained. "Sasuke-kun of course!" There was only one person who would say something like that. "So you were the top rookie Sasuke-chan? Kawaii!" Akako had to lean over the table but she was still able to pinch his cheeks. It was a funny site to see, everyone beside Sakura broke out in laughter. Lunch had been delicious and the girls made Nozomi pay in her drunken state. They walked out of the restaurant.

"I'll drop Nozomi off at her apartment." She was hanging off of Kakashi's arm when he said this, mumbling incoherent words and randomly breaking out in song. He disappeared in a poof of smoke. "I have to cook dinner since mother is out on a mission. Would you like to come over Eiko?" Midori was holding her fan in one hand and the hand of her sister's in another. "No thanks. I have to get home and prepare dinner for Etsu and Ryozo. Not to mention that idiot over there who burns water." The sisters laughed and departed.

Ten minutes had passed when Sasuke turned around and finally noticed the girl who had been at the restaurant. She was following him. "Why are you following me?" He asked. "Ne, ne, ne, a bit egotistical aren't we?" Eiko chuckled. "My compound just happens to be right up here." She pointed to a compound that was indeed up ahead.

"Sasuke, ne?" Eiko asked at the gate to her home. "Hn." He paused. "What's with this dark aura?" She whispered this quietly.

Inside the Banpaia compound one would most likely be scared out of their wits. The traditional Japanese layout for the homes was still in effect, but it did not have the same décor. Dead trees lined the edges, and black roses, dead, littered the area. "Ah…home sweet home! Etsu, ne Imouto-chan!" Eiko called out to her younger sister when she entered the home.

"Onee-san?" She placed her shoes next to the wall. "There you are, did Ryozo make you lunch? Are you hungry?" Long ago, many years ago, her parents had died. To Eiko, Ryo and Kei Banpaia were more than just her guardians, they were her parents.

Ryozo Banpaia, her idiotic older brother. "Ryo-baka. I told you to at least pick something up on your way home. You had no missions today!" This is what she had said after Etsu answered her question. Afterwards she hit him upside the head and went off to prepare dinner. "You have to be bipolar or something woman! Kami-sama, please save me from this banshee sister of mine." Inside the kitchen Ryozo got down on his hands and knees, reciting this until his sister threw a rice ball at him. "That'll teach you not to mess with me." Eiko continued to cook the steak, and once it was fully cooked she added her special 'sauce'.

"It's undercooked."

"Then go eat some human for all I care, you don't appreciate what I cook for you anymore Ryo-nii-baka." Quietly Etsu ate her dinner, occasionally smiling at her older siblings' crazy antics.

"The sauce isn't fresh enough."

"…That's it, YOU'RE GOING DOWN MISTER!"

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOX

I'd appriciate reviews and stuff -- I'm new to fanfiction, and really the only reason I'm posting this here is because people here seem nicer since they review stories I suppose. Quizilla is starting to suck real bad now.

Anyways, that'd be nice and I'll have chapter 2 out soon hopefully.

-Muffin


	2. Chapter 2

Last night's dinner had been crazy. Besides the common, rude comment from Ryozo, Eiko had enjoyed seeing her sister. The sun was beginning to rise and although she disliked it immensely, she forced herself out of the bed and began putting on clothes. "You're late." Ryozo spoke from the doorway. "What are you talking about?" She asked, pulling her oddly colored outfit on. After the proper lightweight slippers were on her feet she opened the curtain.

"It's daylight savings time, the normal sunrise at 6 was two hours ago." He tossed the staff to her. "Kuso…I'm late!" Without wasting time Eiko disappeared with a twirl of her stick.

"I am not late at all!" She announced in the room. Other genin looked at her oddly, including her own teammates and sensei who said in unison, "You're late." With a dramatic sigh and head hung low, Eiko walked forward. "Don't worry Ei-chan, it's only you're fifth time being late! No worries." Akako attempted to comfort her. In return she glared at the young genin. "Come on old man, I want a real mission!"

Eiko looked up to see Naruto on the floor pouting. "What's going on?" She asked. "Since you weren't here we decided to wait for you before picking out a mission." Nozomi-sensei explained. "Well let's get one before all the good C-ranked ones are picked!" Akako agreed immediately and hopped off to the Hokage. _Why is she hopping?_"Hey old man, got any good C-ranked missions for us?"

"Eiko…" Iruka sighed, _Eiko had always been a bit random. Nobody knew which emotion she'd sprout out next. _"You're just one lucky genin. We were about to give the last C-ranked mission to team 7 but you've arrived in time and you're more suited for it." Akako laughed and stuck her tongue out at Naruto, who in return did the same. "Hm…" Midori looked curiously at her friend, "Are you having second thoughts about a C-ranked mission, Eiko?" "None at all. However, Iruka-sensei, you should give that mission to Sasuke-kun and his team." Sasuke looked up now, surprised that she had said that. He chose to ignore the –kun.

"W-w-what?!" Iruka and Naruto both sputtered this. It was mostly Iruka seeing as how he'd known Eiko longer, but both were surprised to hear it. "We're going to complete this mission without failure! Believe it!" Naruto shouted in happiness. "Now wait just one minute," Nozomi stepped in, "I refuse to waste my time babysitting this team while they do some baby D-rank!"

A bat fluttered from behind the Hokage and landed on Eiko's shoulder. "That's okay sensei, you won't have to. Iruka-sensei can just let us do that B-rank he was saving for us." She grinned and Akako did too, "Yatta!" Midori seemed a bit excite too. Now Sakura seemed angry that Eiko's team got a better mission. "Good luck!" She said, as her and her teammates left to go do the mission.

A few weeks later Akako sat up in bed. Next to her Midori lied sleeping soundly on her mat. _Hmm…_She thought to herself, _I haven't seen Eiko-chan in forever! 24 hours is forever, right?_"I'll take Naru-chan with me then." And she set about getting dressed. Pulling on her normal red leather camisole and the matching skirt, she grabbed a piece of toast on her way out. She'd forgotten to leave Midori a note but failed to realize this until and reached Naruto's apartment. "Naru-chan! Naru-chan!" Akako called out while banging on the door.

"Nani?" A groggy Naruto opened the door, drool slipping down his mouth, and boxers still on. He blushed when he realized Akako was at the door. "Akako-chan?"

"Come on Naruto! Let's go see Eiko-chan, and you can bring Sasuke along!" She pulled him into his apartment and forced him to get dressed. Half an hour later they had also found Sasuke standing next to Sakura, and ended up dragging her along too. At the gate to the Banpaia compound Akako paused. "Why are we stopping?" Sakura asked. She still kept her eyes glued to the Uchiha. "I'm waiting for the gate to open, duh!" Akako swayed on her tippy toes. Finally the gate slowly creaked open.

The compound looked a little bit more dreary than usual. Branches hung over the walls surrounding the homes and only gave a little peak as to what to see. "Etsu-chan! Eiko-nee, Ryoi-nii! I'm home!" A large groan came from the first doorway the four saw once they entered the home. On the floor lied Ryoichi, tangled up in a mess of blankets. Etsu walked into the room carrying a tray with food, "Akako-nee, you're in time for breakfast. Onee-san just finished." She said in the soft voice of hers.

"Arigatou Etsu!" Flashing a peace sign she led the Naruto, Sakura, and Sasuke into the kitchen where Eiko was setting the table. "Ohayo Naru-chan, Sasuke-kun, Sakura." The table was set for seven. Immediately Akako sat down and grabbed the nearest Western food she could find, bacon. Sakura sat down next to Akako and after the boys sat down Midori appeared at the doorway and took the sixth seat. The table was filled with chatter as everyone munched on food. "Is your sister going to eat with us?" Sakura asked Eiko.

The two members of team four cracked up, Midori just breaking the edge of a smile. "No that seat belongs to-" Akako was interrupted by a poof of smoke as her sensei appeared dressed in her robe. "I'll tell you, those missions are hell! Never am I pulling an all nighter with Kakashi after I get over a hangover and-" Nozomi stopped when she saw team seven sitting with her team. Quietly she sat down and began eating her rice. A minute later she pulled a bottle out of nowhere and tossed it to Eiko. Silently they gave a 'thank you' 'welcome' exchange. Popping the top off the bottle she gulped down half of the fresh red liquid before setting it down on the table.

Again the table erupted in talk as almost everyone joined in a conversation. Even Sasuke was talking to Midori. Eiko suspected it had something to do with fire or ice jutsu. Naruto broke out in laughter at the joke Akako had made and reached over blindly to get a drink. He slurped down the liquid and only realized he'd picked the wrong bottle a moment too late. "Bleh! Argh! That's disgusting!" He spit it out and sprayed it onto Sakura. In response she screamed and Akako continued to laugh. Dramatically Eiko said, "Noo!" Once Sakura had been changed into an extra robe, and the mess had been cleaned up everyone sat down in the living room.

"What was that?" Naruto still looked disgusted. It had a coppery taste and felt thick in his mouth-"It's blood." Eiko said, she looked a bit angry to him. "Perfectly good blood that you wasted." Team seven gave a grossed out look, but Sasuke just widened his eyes. "Moving onto more important matters." Nozomi came into the room and leaned against the wall, "It's that time again and this time you guys are going in." She left no room for objection.

"Yatta!" Akako exclaimed, she jumped up and down happily. "What time is it?" Sakura asked. "During these few months the Hidden Leaf village holds the chuunin exams. They are tests you take to see how good of a ninja you are and to test your skills as one. The one who comes out on top isn't always the best because they don't always show the right qualities." Midori explained. Nozomi walked over and sat down on the arm of the couch, "And this year my team will enter and become chuunin!"

"I suppose mine will have to join yours too." Kakashi walked into the room. Eiko averted her eyes, pretending to not have already noticed his presence long before anyone else. "Can I help you Kakashi?" Nozomi asked him. "We have another mission to do today but we'll probably be back before the exams next week."

The two had disappeared off in a poof of smoke by the time Etsu walked into the room. Following her was Ryoichi drinking a glass of the thick red liquid. She set down a plate with cups of tea. Everyone took a glass for themselves. Naruto looked curiously at his and even sniffed it until he decided it was harmless. "Ne, ne, ne Eiko-chan, we should fight them to see how good the rookie are!"

"I'd win Akako-chan, believe it!" Naruto argued back. "Nu-uh"

"Yeah-huh."

"Nu-uh."

"Yeah-huh."

"Nu-" The two fought until Sakura interrupted. "Shut it!" Akako giggled as Sakura glared at her teammate. "Let's do it then." Open mouthed, Sakura wordlessly nodded to what Sasuke had said. She felt surprised that he would agree. _**Inner Sakura: **__Cha! He'd win and kick their butts! _"I like that spirit!" Eiko exclaimed. Her and Akako got up and began to drag Midori out the door, Naruto followed behind.

Eiko led them all outside excitedly to the small clearing in the Banpaia compound. Dead trees surrounded the area, but the grass was a fresh green with roses growing all around. In the small storage shed next to the clearing, she pulled out a few weapons and tossed them to Akako. Midori sat down and began to polish the wooden edge. "Who's up first?" She asked. Akako sat next to Midori and arranged her weapons. The few Eiko had handed to her included a long staff with a spear at the end and a scythe. The staff was decorated and the ending spear had two others on each side. And the scythe was a metal engraved red on the inside and lined with silver. She held both up debating which to use.

In the end she had decided to use the scythe, "All right I'll go first! Naruto do you want to try a warm up with me, ne, or is it too challenging?" He got up and gave a playful glare, "Let's see you try and beat me! Shadow clone jutsu!" Without wasting a moment the battle had begun. Naruto surrounded her with lots of clones each wearing the same grin. Surprised to see this type of move from him, Akako faltered for a moment and then regained composure. "Come out and play Naru-chan!"

She held up the scythe and did a spin where she spun the scythe with her body. Red light shot out of the very edge in a thin line. Smoke filled the clearing until all that was left was an unconscious Naruto, flung back against a dead tree. "Sugoi Akako, you've really come a long way on that ni-sen jutsu." Eiko praised her. The very name was red-line, and the red line was produced by her chakra traveling through the scythe as a medium. Each of the girls practiced using an object as a medium because it boosted each of their strengths. Akako sat down panting a bit, the move had taken a lot out of her, and she would need to practice it more. "Ne, Midori-nee, are you going?" She shook her head and continued to polish the fans.

"I'll go then." Eiko announced. Without being asked to, Sasuke stood up as well. "Won't you need your staff?" Indeed she had left her staff lying next to Midori. She giggled. "Eiko only uses the staff if she is fighting someone of strength. As much as she likes you she'll deny any use of it until you show true strength." Sasuke looked at Midori when she said this, surely he looked strong. "Looking at Mi-chan's pretty face isn't going to help you win Sasuke-kun." Eiko laughed again. "I suppose you want a real fight then? Alright! Black arts: kyousei yami!"

"Oh! She's using the jutsu Mi-nee, look!" Akako said excitedly. Midori went on with polishing her fans, simply nodding in response. Her sister pouted and sat down next to Naruto. She continued to apply the ointment to where he'd been cut or bruised. "What's the jutsu do?" Sakura asked her.

"Her black arts jutsu involves various genjutsu or ninjutsu. Great darkness if always her first move and it's a genjutsu that's nearly impossible to get out of. Only Midori and I know how to, Nozomi-sensei too, but she had trouble trying to learn how! It's her greatest strategy." Just like Akako had explained the area around Sasuke and Eiko was growing dim, and a hazy blackness was sprouting from Eiko and covering the area. A minute later Sakura couldn't see anymore. "Sasuke-kun?" Her voice quivered in the inky darkness. Next to her Akako silently patted her hand and the soft sound of cloth rubbing against wood was heard.

"Do you give up yet Sasuke-kun?" Eiko teased. Around him her voice echoed making it impossible to tell where she was. "What kind of jutsu is this?" He asked. "I shouldn't tell you but…this is genjutsu. One that even your sensei would have trouble getting out of." Focusing on her voice was hard, it continued to echo. Finally he decided to throw kunai. They land in random directions but none sounded like they hit the target. He threw two more again, this time he heard the silent sound of footsteps as they moved. The noise was almost invisible but he grasped it and prepared the jutsu, "Fire ball jutsu!" The large fire ball rolled in the direction the footsteps had went but didn't hit the target. However, Sasuke saw Eiko the moment the fire highlighted the area.

Outside of the haze Midori jumped out of the way to avoid the fiery mess.

"Do you give up yet Sasuke-kun?" He gave no response. Eiko grew bored of the game; it was no fun when the mouse refused to take the bait. "Black arts: suffocation!" When Sasuke heard this he immediately went in the direction but it was too late as the darkness around him felt like it was closing in, suffocating him.

"Ne, ne, ne Sasuke-chan, are you awake yet?" Akako nudged the Uchiha for the seven hundredth time. Groggily he woke up and felt warmth run to his face. Both Eiko and Akako were at a close proximity to him. "It's almost evening," Eiko said, "I have to go prepare dinner again. Be prepared for tomorrow Sasuke-kun!" She picked up her staff and headed towards the main house. Akako stood up to lend him a hand, "She's right about being prepared for tomorrow. That's when the chuunin exams start. Not many people make it…especially when they're weak." Outside the gates they faced opposite directions. "Hn."

"Will you make it Sasuke-chan?"

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXO

So someone reviewed for the first chapter it made me happy. Reviews are happiness and I'd appriciate your input before I post the next chapter. I'm posting in a way where like if I've made 3 chapters I'll post 2 when I finish 4. Since I'm almost done this other chapter I'll post 2.

I'll check tomorrow to see how it's doing so input! Review! That shtuff!

-Muffin


	3. Chapter 3

The day of the chuunin exams had arrived. Together all three girl stood in front of the closed door, each anxious or nervous. "Let's do our best Eiko-nee, Midori-nee." Akako said. Eiko opened the door, slowly waiting, as if suddenly a mysterious white light would engulf them. "This isn't some TV show Eiko-chan. No white light will engulf us. On the other side of this door is just random ninjas from other countries and-" Akako had pushed past her to walk inside but stopped when she saw the scary people inside. "They look scary." Eiko laughed at the terrified look on her teammate's face. Behind them Midori filed in and looked around with her passive face. The nonexistent emotion on her face scared a few of the ninja that had been glaring at them.

"Leave my forehead out of it!" The girls looked over to their left where a group of genin was standing. Three familiar looking ones stood out, Sakura especially with her pink hair. "Sakura-chan!" Akako yelled to her, Sakura turned around to see team four. She glared at Eiko but stopped when she saw the look on Midori's face. "Akako-san…" Sakura said when she stopped next to her. "Well aren't you going to introduce me to your little friends Naru-chan?" She asked. Eiko and Midori stood next to their younger teammate, who was so much like a little sister to them.

"The three rookie genin." Midori said once Naruto finished everyone's name and a little description of them (episode 23). Out of nowhere Eiko appeared next to Sasuke, "So these are the little children I'm going to have competition with? Kawaii!" She pinched his cheek and giggled. He glared and tried to gently push her off him. 'Gently' and ended up shoving her until she was twiddling her fingers in a pout position. Sasuke sighed and helped her up only to have Eiko hug him, and two girls give her death glares.

Midori sighed at her teammate's antics, _this happened last year too. _"Enough Eiko." She said. "Midori-chan!" Eiko whined back, she came and stood next to her friend. "And you are?" The girls looked at the last guy who was also from the leaf village, at least that's what his hitai showed. "Kabuto Yakushi."

"Hm…I've never seen you around before. Aren't you too old to be a genin?" Akako punched her sister in a gentle manner, "Don't be so mean. Nice meeting you Kabuto, but we have to go. I see Lee-kun over there and he seems to be calling our names! Bye!" Eiko followed as the younger sister dragged them over to their old friends. "He had a strange aura about him Eiko-chan…"

"I know Akako…Tenten! Hey!" She said, running up and hugging her old friend. The two girls giggled over and over, talking about random topics just like they used to. Lee and Akako seemed to be doing the same thing, but Akako was taking out her weapons to show them off. Then there was Neji. Silently Midori sat down next to him.

"Neji-kun." She had to be the only one who ever called him that in such a soft way. He "Hn." –ed and blushed. "The nine rookie genin have all gathered here."

"Is that so?"

"They're not the only ones who have decided to pay us a visit." Akako ran over with Lee, laughing the whole way. "Hi Neji-chan!" She waved Eiko over too, who came giggling with Tenten. Her teal eyes seemed happier than ever. "Ne-" The whole room grew quiet as she was interrupted. "It's time to begin the written test. I am Ibiki Morino, you're first exam proctor, and from this moment on your worst enemy." Akako laughed when he said written, she could tell Naruto would probably flip out at this. The moment he said enemy, people gasped, but Midori remained silent. He explained the rules quite loudly so that everyone would hear, Eiko and Midori paid close attention. "You will pick a number and sit in the seat the number tells you to."

Everyone got into a line to get a small card. When Midori reached the front she reached inside the basket and pulled out the number 5. Eiko was next in line, she watched as her friend went to sit in the front row. Nervously she reached in, "Yatta! I got 27!" She cheered. Naruto was right behind her. He turned around to face Akako, "What's she so excited about?" "That's her favorite number." She explained.

Finally all the genin were situated and in their seats. Ibiki had just explained a majority of the rules. _The rules are strange, _Eiko thought to herself, _if you get caught cheating you lose two points. _"The tenth question will be given at the end of the 45 minutes. Ready…begin!" A rustling sound filled the room as people flipped over their tests to begin.

Midori looked at the questions, easily filling them out, but pausing halfway through the page. "These questions are too hard for any normal genin." She said quietly to herself. "Then there is only one reason for this, I just hope Akako and Eiko figure it out." Sighing she filled out the rest. The clock said 4:10. "Only 20 more minutes left."

All the questions! Akako hadn't even begun to fill them out. Despite that she had figured out the point of the exam, they had to cheat. There was only 20 minutes left to the test and by now she knew Midori was done. _Eiko would've been smart enough to figure it out too…I can't doubt her!_

Sakura sat next to Eiko. Her unusual, multi-colored hair formed a dome around her head as she bent over the test. "Number one is deciphering a code…four is a little easy but I shouldn't risk the others." Carefully she looked around her, _the point of this test is to cheat. Midori won't have to but Akako will need help. _"Kuchiyosu no jutsu!" She yelled under her breath.

Fifteen more minutes. The clock read 4:15.

Biting down on her sharp fang, she swiped it underneath the table. The familiar black patterned line appeared, spreading out, and glowing for just a moment. Eiko looked around to make sure none of the people around the room caught her. Finally a small bat the size of her thumb came flying out. It flapped its wings quickly to keep aloft. "Ohayo Puchi-kun." She said to the little bat. "Ohayo Eiko-ue!" He said in his little squeaky voice. "Go to Midori."

"Hai!" He said, flying off. Puchi flew low on the ground, and in and out of genin to remain hidden. In the very front row he reached Midori. "Midori-dono!" He said next to her ear. She looked up surprised, then noticing the tiny animal flying next to her. Midori nodded, understanding his presence.

Nozomi sat with the other sensei in a room, lying around lazily. Asuma tapped his cigarette on the ash tray, she never understood why he smoked. "Lunch wasn't as good without Eiko's cooking." Nozomi rubbed her stomach and sighed. "I wish they'll come back already!"

He chuckled, "Your wish might just come true. I heard this year Ibiki is the exam proctor." Her eyes went wide. "Great…sticking them with that sadist right off the bat." Nozomi jumped onto Kakashi's lap and began to ruffle his already messed up hair. "Don't worry Kakashi-chan! Even if their chances look iffy, I know my students will pass at least!" He groaned when she landed on him.

"Alright, listen up, here's the tenth and final question!"

Akako pouted, _oh get on with it! _The door in the back of the room opened. Everybody turned around to look at the odd, cat-suit wearing guy who entered. Akako dismissed him and turned around, waiting for the exam proctor to say the final question.

Ibiki continued after dealing with the genin, "There are a few rules to the tenth question. If you choose not to take it, regardless of your answers to the test, you will get a zero. Meaning you and your team fails." Chatter filled the room. _There's no point in taking the tenth question if you don't think you'll pass…_Eiko looked around for her teammates. When she caught their eyes she would wink, and they would nod back.

"If you choose not to take it raises your hand. Your number will be recorded and you'll be free to go. People began to leave, each person slowly raising their hand to leave. Akako looked next to her to see Sakura with a worried face. "Don't you believe in him Sakura?" She asked. Sakura turned to her with a confused face, slowly putting down her hand.

Naruto slowly began raising his hand, and as the tock clicked by, he slammed it down on the desk. "Don't underestimate me! I don't quit and I don't run! You can act tough all you want you guys aren't going to scare me off! No way! I don't care if I get stuck as a genin for the rest of my life, I'll still be Hokage some day!" Midori sat back in her seat and sighed, "I suppose that's Naruto for you."

"I've got no choice then…well then, you all pass."

"Ne, ne, ne I totally knew that!" Sakura turned to glare at Akako, she returned it with a mischievous glance. Eiko glanced to her left where the windows let the sun through. She sensed a presence coming quickly. It happened all at once.

The glass broke as something or someone came flying through. Team four could only look on with wide eyes. "I'll be your next proctor, Anko Mitarashi! Ready for the second test? Let's go then, follow me!"

Ibiki peeked out from behind the curtain, "You're early…again."

Later that night while the sun was setting the girls set out to go to the park. "Ah! Nothing I like more than a picnic in the morning!" Eiko said, putting the basket down. Calmly, Midori sat down next to her and unfolded the blanket. Akako took the food that Eiko had prepared, and laid it on top. "Good job on the test girls, I knew you could do it!" Out of nowhere Nozomi appeared. Scared, Akako jumped to the side, and when she realized it was her sensei she began to yell at her. "Ne, you're more of a little kid than me!"

"Take that back brat!"

"Never!" The two fought on. Happily Eiko dipped the tempura into her special sauce before letting it float through her mouth. "Nozomi-sensei." Midori said. "Eh, hai Midori?" She asked.

"Tomorrow is the second part of the chuunin exams in the forest of death. We will make it through." Nozomi nodded in response, "I believe you will. And if you don't, well I have some sort of fit punishment in mind." She grabbed Akako around the neck and began giving her a noogie. Everyone laughed. "A toast!" Eiko said, raising a glass. "To becoming chuunin, and to a life without hardship!" Again they laughed, "Cheers." They chorused. _How long before you appear again? _


	4. Chapter 4

"Check."

"In place."

"Present!"

"Congregate in formation D, plan D assembled, and fire!" Team four chorused. After Eiko, Midori, and Akako had stated their positions plan D fell into place. "Take this Lee-kun!" Akako cried out. Firing the eight kunai at the ground, they fell into a circle around Tenten and Neji. The two could only sit surprised as a tarp fell onto them and muffled their screams. "Tenten and Neji accounted for. Where's Lee?" Eiko asked. She looked around wildly but couldn't spot the bushy browed friend.

"You can't capture the green beast of Konoha!" The two girls heard Akako's scream and looked to see Lee knock her off her branch. Before she could fall victim to the forest floor, she through a kunai at the tree and managed to swing off the rope attached. Midori jumped down to where Neji and Tenten were, just as Tenten burst through a hole in the tarp. She held her kunai out in triumph. "Can't keep me locked down either." The three kunoichi giggled at their antics. The more mature one walked over to help Neji out, "We're sorry we surprised you Neji-kun." Midori said in her solemn voice, just by hearing it anyone could tell she wasn't hiding any kind of laughter.

Once Neji finished blushing he replied, "I knew it was coming." At this Midori smiled. "What I didn't see coming was my hard worked meal get ruined! Eiko!" Tenten whined.

"The food was rather burnt." Lee gasped when Neji said this, "That was very rude Neji. Gomen Tenten, I apologize for his rudeness. The food burned with the power of youth!" The girls laughed again. "I have extra food thanks to Midori warning me, since I ruined your meal let me make it up." At this Eiko took out the food and began to cook it. Once the rice and maitake mushrooms were done cooking everybody sat down to eat.

"Itadakimasu." They chorused. "Ah! Eiko-san, the food is delicious!"

"Thank you Lee-san. What do you think Akako-imouto?" Akako ignored her and continued to dump the food into her mouth piece by piece. She paused to wipe the soy sauce from her face. "So how's the forest of death for you?" She asked.

"It's only been a day and we haven't made much progress. Ne, what about you Akako-san? I'm sure your team has made plenty of progress." Tenten began putting out the fire and talked over her shoulder as she did so. Akako and Eiko worked to cover any tracks that they'd been there while the other two, older genin relaxed. "We've already gotten a scroll and managed to get rid of a few teams!" When all work was done she stretched.

"You must have gotten stronger then, Midori-san." Midori nodded to Neji's comment. "Of course. It's been a year hasn't it? We all have gotten rid of many weaknesses and gained much strength." The sun was setting over the trees and began to cast shadows all over. "When the shadow finishes stretching we'll be long gone…and hidden as well." The Hyuuga nodded knowingly, as if he understood what his friend had said. He had of course.

"Ja ne then." Eiko said, quickly as they had come, the trio departed into the leaves.

The familiar rush of adrenaline filled her. As Eiko jumped from branch to branch she began forming the jutsu. "White Arts: Chi Kashou!" She whispered under her breath. With the staff held out in front of her, she waited as her senses became more acute for the moment, and then died back down. Now she knew the jutsu had been activated for the sound of music filled her ears. The sweet melody Midori's blood played, and the fast paced tone of Akako's, were heard next to the three unknown ones.

Eiko had activated the second level of her bloodline.

Chi Kashou of the white arts played the songs only sung by the blood of humans. This jutsu could only ever be used by members of the Banpaia clan born directly, or someone inducted into the clan. Only one had ever been inducted.

Eiko smiled at the memory when he came into their lives. _I miss him so-_"Eiko, are you focusing?" Akako's voice snapped her out of the daze. "Gomen Akako-chan. Three, each tailing directly behind me in a lined formation. The scent is familiar but the song is different, one is so boring I could fall asleep. Ready? Activate plan C." The girls fell into the formation they had practiced for hours until it was perfect.

Quickly the group came up to them as they jumped from branch to branch at a slower pace. When Eiko signaled Midori, Akako and her turned around to get out of the way. Midori flipped around and brought out her fans. "Koori tou jutsu!" She said. The smaller fan slid through the air too fast for anyone to see what was going on. A minute later the groans of the three stalkers filled the air. Eiko and Akako jumped down to see who had been following them.

"Shikamaru! And Ino and Choiji!" Akako said, surprised. Eiko looked and sure of enough, recognized the three rookie genin Naruto had introduced earlier. "This was troublesome. I told you guys that we should've looked for a group that was weak." The two girls on the ground laughed while their teammate took her time getting down.

"It was only a group of rookies." Midori confirmed. Ino scowled at her, seemingly offended at being a 'rookie'. "For your information we've already gotten a scroll." Ino crossed her arms and smirked. "Interesting," Midori replied, "We've gotten ours as well and taken out a few teams. Right now we're on our way to the tower. Perhaps you'd like to join us?" The way Midori had said it made Ino scowl once more. "I thought we were going to get a scroll from them Ino." Choiji had to pause after he said this in order to pull out another bag of chips.

The night sky was beginning to give way to the sun. "It's the beginning of the second day. Your team should work harder, and as a kunoichi you should become stronger." Midori stated. Again, the blond ninja glared. Glancing to her left, Midori pulled up the falling strap to her black sack. "The sun is rising Eiko." She said in her soft voice. "Time to go then, we'll be seeing you later, ne, Ino-chan?" The three girls fled into the morning light, flitting through the branches.

"I believe…tower…ahead." Although Akako's sentence had been cut off by the wind occasionally, the bare message had gotten through to her teammates. Just like she had said, the bright red tower stood leaning up ahead. They began to up their pace until they had to be careful where they jumped.

"_Onee-san, onee-san! Today I start going to the academy! Onee-" The little Eiko ran through the compound, sliding on the newly waxed, wooden floorboards. Just as she turned the corner, waving a letter in the air, she crashed into Ryoichi. Six year old Eiko shoved the letter into his face. "Ryoi-nee, today I get to go to the academy!" _

_He laughed at his little sister, picked her up, and swung her in the air. "First you have to eat breakfast and then Ryozo will walk you to the academy. Okay?" She giggled, "Hai." _

"_And when the teacher talks, pay attention. Got it?" Ryozo turned to his sister Eiko. Today would be the first day she starts going to the academy and the look on his face showed he was worried. Again Eiko nodded. "And then Ryo-nee, I'll grow up to be just like my brothers." Her face broke out into a grin. He smiled back and fixed the hat on her head, shading her face from the sun that would take her a while to get used to. _

_In the classroom Eiko stood looking around nervously. The teacher had yet to appear but tons of children stood around. Some stood in groups, but girls were with girls and boys with boys. "I'm going to win first Lee-san!" Someone hit Eiko and she cried out, "Oof!" Sitting up she rubbed her soar bottom and then forced the stray strands of her out of her face. "Gomen! Gomen! Gomen nasai!" A girl slightly shorter than Eiko stood in front of her apologizing. She held out a hand to her to help Eiko up. "It's okay. I'm Banpaia Eiko! What's your name?" The little girl decked out in red held out her hand, "Fujimoto Akako! Call me Akako-chan and I'll call you Eiko-chan!" The girls shook hands and laughed._

"_This is Rock Lee, my friend!" The boy she must have been running with walked over, and saluted. "Ohayo Banpaia-san!" "Ohayo!" Eiko said back. "Children, settle down now." The voice of the teacher filled the room. Kids hurried to find a seat next to a friend. "Sit next to us, ne?" Akako asked her. Nodding in response she followed them into the closest row to them. _

_And then at lunch Akako introduced her sister to her new friend. A friendship was made. _

"_I am Nozomi. Today you are ninja, but only genin. The lowest of the low, and the ones at the very bottom. Tell me a few things about yourself!" The woman had long purple hair and fair skin without any blemishes. "Like what sensei?" Just the day before Eiko had gone out and bought an outfit, excited that she had finally graduated from the academy. Also, she decided to bring her staff with her even though she couldn't do much with it. "Tell me your name, what you like, hate, and your dream. Beginning with you." Nozomi pointed to Midori who sat next to her sister. "My name if Fujimoto Midori. I like my fans and younger sister. I dislike annoying fan girls and I want to become powerful to protect my sister!" (Note: The fans she is talking about are her fans that she battles with) She smiled and ruffled her sister's hair. Akako grinned, "Me? Okay well…hmm…oh yeah! My name is Fujimoto Akako. I like my older sister and generally everything! Especially Lee-san and Eiko-chan, they're my friends. I suppose I dislike …well nothing! And I want to become stronger and known for my weaponry skills even though I can't do many powerful ninjutsu!" She made a peace sign at the end. Nozomi pointed to Eiko._

_Smiling softly she thought for a moment before speaking. "My name is Banpaia Eiko. I don't have many preferences but I do like my friends and family, especially my little sister Etsu. My dream is to find out more about my family's history and someday find out the reason for my parents' death." _

"_As genin still I will put you through rigorous tests for years until it's time for you to leave me. If you succeed I am positive your dreams will come true. Alright! Meet here again at 9 p.m. tomorrow for your first test!" Nozomi disappeared after her mini speech. __**Maybe my…no our, dreams will come true. **__Eiko looked to her friends, __**yes, I am certain they will come true. **_

This was the point to the chuunin exams. To them it wasn't just an ordinary exam, not just a plain old test. The chuunin exams would give them the right to pass on to complete their dreams. They wouldn't give up.

And as the tall red tower drew closer, Eiko thought to herself once again, **soon they will come true. **


	5. Chapter 5

Sakura-Eiko-Tenten. That was the order in which it went as Eiko stood in the third row, fourth one in. Sasuke stood in front of Sakura and Akako stood next to him, of course with Lee next to her. Midori stood in the very first row, left hand corner. Everyone listened carefully as Anko spoke. Well…mostly everyone. Eiko could see Ino eyeing Sasuke, and Shikamaru rolling his eyes at her. "Hokage-sama will now give an explanation of the Third Exam." Akako turned her attention to the Hokage and grinned at seeing the old man.

He coughed before speaking, "I will now tell you the true purpose of this exam." Midori zoned out at this. At one point in her life she would've cared, but now she knew this exam held little purpose for her. "Whose he?" By the small voice of her sister, Midori broke out of thought and looked forward. A new man had appeared, bowing low before the Hokage. When he turned around she noticed a few prominent features. For one thing, his face looked sickly, and he repeatedly coughed. "Everyone," He began, "before the Third Exam…" Continuously he coughed.

Eiko became worried that the young chuunin exam judge would keel over and possibly die. He hacked into his hand, "There's something I need you to do. Before you can advance to the Third Exam's main battle you'll need to do some preliminary matches according to regulation. Just to decrease the number of matches."

"No way!" Akako said. She turned around to face Eiko as if to say, 'is this for real?' "The battles will have to begin immediately so if those who choose to quit now after the explanation, you may do so."

When he finished explaining, Eiko heard the sound similar to a groan, and look over to see Sasuke clutching his shoulder. "Sasuke…please stop." Sakura said, her eyes were brimming with tears. "I'll quit." _Eh?_Midori turned to look at her left and saw the guy from the First Exam. _I believe his name was Kabuto…he has an aura I don't like. Eiko will have already noticed it. _"I suppose nobody else wishes to retire?" Hayate asked. Eiko watched as Sakura slowly moved her hand. "Sakura-san." She said, she took her own hand to cover Sakura's, and forced her to stay still. Sakura tried to remove her hand but was held back. Sasuke watched this in surprise as he was about to stop her himself.

"We should have more faith in Sasuke-kun. He is strong. Only cowards and traitors are weak."

"Then let's begin the preliminary matches." Hayate coughed into his hand and then, looked down at his clipboard. "They will be one-on-one battles. Meaning, this will be like real combat. Since there are only twenty-two people now, we will have eleven matches. These winners will advance to the Third Exam. Now to decide your fate…"

There was a screen up front on the wall. Eiko watched as the names flickered and finally settled.

_Uchiha Sasuke_

_Akado Yoroi_

"Well then," Eiko smiled at Sasuke, "good luck then Sasuke-kun. Let's go Sakura-san." Her face still looked stricken with worry, but she couldn't fight back as Eiko gently led her away. Akako came to her other side and took the other arm. "You'll see Sakura-chan. Sasuke will win." Sakura could only hope that Akako spoke the truth. Slowly the three ascended the stairs and watched as Sasuke began his match. After the Forest of Death everyone, well mostly everyone, would've been out of chakra. Eiko wondered if she was correct in thinking Sasuke would win. "If you're ready, begin." Hayate stated, moving back a little to stay safe. Yoroi attacked first, one hand glowing bright blue, and latched it onto Sasuke's head. "Then again…I might just be right about this." Eiko smiled again, _I must be right. _

Like she had said, Sasuke won. Akako still stood next to Sakura, and grinned when she saw Sasuke finish his final move. "Lion's barrage ne? Interesting." Sakura smiled too, seemingly glad that he was alright.

"Your match is next." The voice spooked Akako, "AH!" Surprised by the new visitor, she jumped into Eiko's arms, and finally stopped screaming when she realized it was her sensei. "Nozomi-sensei you scared me! And how do you know that it's Eiko-chan's match next. Your not psychic, you barely beat Midori at an-" Nozomi walked over to her student and covered her mouth. "Trust me on this." She said.

Eiko looked over to the screen, waiting for something to appear stating her match was next. Finally the names began flickering…flashing until they settled:

_Aburame Shino_

_Banpaia Eiko_

_Sensei was right, for a change. _Eiko waved to Sakura and Eiko before walking down the steps. "(Little) Sukoshi Eiko! If you don't win, forget coming back for training come Monday!" Eiko turned around and smiled at her sensei, understanding, and letting her know without words that she would win. "Begin." Hayate coughed, and just at that moment, Eiko did rapid flips backwards to make distance between them. "Shino-san right? One of the nine rookie ninja I believe?" She asked. Without wasting a moment, she pulled her staff off her back. The sound of wood hitting floor echoed.

"I have to win you know? You heard my sensei up there. So gomen if it was your plan to make it to the main battle..." Eiko examined him as she spoke, waiting for him to make the first move. A new noise filled the air. It reminded her of the locusts in summer, when their sharp chatter would fill the crisp morning air.

_Bugs._

Creepy, inky, and yet tiny, bugs. Crawling in a large number, towards her. "…I'm afraid I just can't let you win." _Clank._The sound of her staff hitting the floor. Sakura leaned in closer to see what was happening. _The bugs had disappeared! _"Akako-san, what happened to the bugs?" She asked. But Akako was too absorbed into the match to even bother answering.

As her staff reverberated of the floor, she felt a familiar sensation fill her as she focused. The entire number of bugs that had been crawling towards her a moment ago had disappeared with a clank of her staff. Naruto was in awe. "An army of these sized bugs are impossible to destroy without using an extensive amount of chakra." Eiko was a bit creeped out when Shino spoke, his voice was too…something she couldn't place.

"Want to know a secret?" Eiko asked, bending forward with her staff. "You're absolutely right."

_What's this girl thinking? _Kakashi asked himself. Nozomi looked content with the way the match was going so far. Her student had admitted to using extra chakra, but she wasn't showing any sign of displeasure! "Kakashi-senpai…I bet you're wondering what she did." The sound of senpai made him feel old. "You're right. Feel like telling me her secret?" Nozomi giggled. "The way Eiko works is unique, and I figure this is because of her bloodline. With her moves-"

"Shino, Shino, Shino." Eiko chuckled. "Haven't you noticed my little shadows yet? They've been here for quite some time, eating your little pets up, and you've done nothing." No, he'd notice. It took Shino some time, but he had come to realize what was happening. Every time a bug drew closer to her, it disappeared. And because nothing moved in the room, it was odd that her shadow seemed to recreate itself on multiple sides. _Sides the bugs would go to…_

"-although she uses an extensive amount of chakra, she uses it to full advantage. I was a bit worried about helping her train this way but she's come along brilliantly. This isn't a jutsu destroying those bugs. No the thing destroying the bugs is-"

"So you've summoned a creature. You still won't win with that." Eiko grinned to her full capacity, he had nailed it on the dot. Except, "Shino-san…my pet_s_don't like being called it or that. Rather what they are…" _Bats_appeared. Many leaving her shadow and more escaping from the shadows of other places. They fluttered near the ceiling. Now the sound of bugs came, and now on a larger scale than before.

Nearly a hundred bats had gathered together and created their own shadow as a group. Eiko could feel the exhaustion weighing down on her now, the cost of using so much chakra. The tiny creatures of the night faced the insects that Shino had called upon. Night seemed to descend with the combination of the two. She didn't wait for anybody as she grabbed her staff and leapt forward. While the animals fought above, Shino and Eiko fought below, Shino with only his kunai to defend against the rapid jabs from his opponent.

They fought neck to neck, only using brute strength to try and force the other back. Pooling all his strength together Shino lunged at her and sent her falling. Eiko disappeared into a poof of smoke as she landed. He looked around wary, others in the room looked around confused as to what had happened.

"Do you see what the point to this is now Kakashi?" Nozomi asked. She was proud to call Eiko her pupil. He nodded solemnly, only focusing on the match. In a mere second he barely caught onto what happened. The mass of bats and bugs had dwindled considerably and now a small chunk flew at Shino. They disappeared into another poof of smoke and out of that came Eiko, flying towards Shino quickly. In that moment he was unable to defend himself at the attack, as it came to fast to escape fast enough. Even with him moving out of the way slightly Shino had caught the most damage and slid across the ground.

Eiko had toppled onto him and rolled over during the trip down. Everybody held their breath, waiting for someone to move. Finally Eiko sat up, slowly but surely, and came to a standing point with the help of her staff. "Looks like the winner is Banpaia Eiko." Hayate said. He walked over to Shino and leaned down, looking at the boy who got tackled. Looking back at Eiko he saw that one of her teammates probably, had come to help her up. The girl in the gray kimono examined her and the scratches she had produced. "You shouldn't have done that Eiko." Midori said, one arm holding her friend up. Eiko grinned, "I won didn't I?"

"Yatta, Eiko won!" Akako cried out from her spot. She waved her hand in the air at her sister and friend, very happy. _Whose next though? _On the screen the next pair of names was appearing right away.

_Kankuro_

_Tsurugu Misumi_

"Huh. I don't remember seeing either of them!" Midori turned to her sister, "That's because we never met them. I'd like to see how they fight."

The fight didn't last long. They had discovered Kankuro was a puppet master, an interesting choice as a ninja, and that he was ruthless. The man had been a goner from the start. "Who's next then?" Eiko asked. She was sitting on the cold floor with her legs sticking out between the railings. Akako gasped when she looked at the screen. "It's me…against Sakura-chan!" Sakura looked at the screen worried and realized it was her against Akako. She knew Akako was strong…she had little chance of winning.

"Let's not hold back, ne Sakura-chan?" Akako asked when they stood on the ground. Hayate had yet to say begin. At that moment he coughed into his hand and said a hoarse, "You can begin when you're ready." Akako didn't bother getting ready. Without waiting for Sakura to go she jumped forward and threw long needles at her. Sakura managed to jump out of the way, avoiding the possibly deadly senbon. With a burst of speed Akako ran around her, and slowly became faster the more times she ran in circles. A minute later a few more needles were launched. This time Sakura took out a kunai to block them.

Eiko began to understand what Akako was doing. She had done it before in order to try and psyche people out. Running in circles made her faster, and the faster she went the harder it was to figure out where the next launch of needles would come from. Sakura found it harder to block the needles. At first it was only three at a time, but now it appeared to be six, then nine. "Gomen Sakura-chan!" She looked up surprised to see Akako jumping down on her, foot ready to kick her. It looked just like the move Eiko had used minus the staff. _Hmm…_She only had a moment to decide but Sakura jumped into the air with a kunai outstretched in her right hand.

And then Sakura passed right through Akako. She disappeared in a poof of smoke, and Sakura ended up landing back in the circle of the running Akako. Landing proved difficult from that move. Another trio of needles was launched. Without moving Sakura took the blow, only one piercing the skin. She ignored the little prick of pain and tried throwing a kunai at the circling Akako. The kunai hit something, but only to have that object disappear in a poof of smoke. A wavering drowsiness began to set into Sakura. She felt it come and go as she tried fighting it. The moving Akako stopped and stood in front of her, catching her when she fell into a deep slumber.

"Where am I?" Sakura asked when she woke up. After leaving that dreadful darkness it seemed more pleasant than the bright light she saw now. "In the hospital. Gomen Sakura-chan!" Akako wailed, clutching her friend's hand. "Akako made an extra strong dose despite me watching over her. Her poison just knocks people out for a few hours or so." Midori stood behind her younger sister. Just as she finished speaking, the last teammate entered the door, calling out to someone. "Bye!" She yelled. Eiko walked over to Sakura. "You missed a whole seven matches, including Naruto's! He went against Kiba and I thought he'd lose in the end because in the beginning-" Sakura listened to her talk in great deal about her friend's match. Interrupting the pink kunoichi asked, "What about Lee?"

Akako looked up at this with a sad smile. "Lee-kun had a bit of an accident while fighting the young sand genin." She recalled the youngest of the three sand genin from Sunagakure. The thought of him sent chills up her spine. "Who made it to the main battle?" She asked.

Midori answered her this time, "Naruto, Eiko, Akako, and of course I did. A few other ninja from our village made it too, Neji and Shikamaru."

A knock came from the door, breaking the momentary silence once Midori had finished speaking. "Visiting times are almost over." The nurse said, peeking inside. The four girls nodded. Eiko took out a small vase with a daffodil inside and placed it on the table next to Sakura. "We'll go now then. Bye Sakura-san."

When the girls left Sakura laid in the hospital bed only covered by a thin sheet. The sun was setting and sent splashes of light into the room. After today she could only think of a few things before she fell into another slumber…

What would come next?

XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOX

p Gomen! With school (EVIL) starting back up after this lovely long weekend, updates will have to wait until at least Thursday because of a stupid social studies project... . 

I'd like it if people review and stuff. I've gotten an idea that the story should be at least 24 chapters long. After that there is a sequel that isn't really something you have to read. The sequel is just the ending I imagine for the story but once the story is over feel free to imagine whatever you want. If I do end up doing the sequel I'll wait for a while before posting, at least a week.

- muffin


	6. Chapter 6

(Author's note: I should've said this in the beginning unless I did…no I do not own Naruto, if I did the whole story would be about Deidara , anyways, I've altered this chapter so its completely different than the storyline and it doesn't appear at all. And I adjusted the characters appearances so if Eiko had a purple outfit and some other colored hair before, it's different. Below this are the new characters appearances and outfits they'll be wearing…I think. I might not be able to get it in. A few foods are mentioned like tempura (seafood or vegetables deep fried in tempura batter) and sashimi, among a few others. If you pay attention some of the foods explain themselves.)

"We're going to the beach." Nozomi said with her hands on her hips.

"WHAT?!" The two teams-minus Midori and Neji-cried out on the top of their lungs. At the bridge the water rushed past them quietly. Midori sat on top of the rails that kept people from falling over. "We should be training Nozomi-sensei, for the main battle!" Eiko protested. Her sensei sighed, "I know but…I need a vacation! And Gai promised to watch over you." She grinned and shrugged her shoulders. Akako gave a pout but gave in, after that everyone else did too.

"Good." Nozomi said. "Now go get your stuff I'll time you for 15 minutes." Before she could say go someone else appeared, "Go with the power of youth!" Gai cried out. Tenten and Eiko fell back screaming in surprise. Lee looked at his sensei with burning eyes, "YES GAI-SENSEI!" He took off with a trail of smoke following him from behind.

Neji glared at his teammates retreating figure, how he embarrassed him. "I'll see you soon then Neji-kun." Midori said. Grabbing her sister's hand she used some jutsu to disappear as well. Tenten and Eiko took off running together. "Aren't you going Neji?" Nozomi asked, looking at him. He grunted and jumped down from his spot of the rails. Walking towards the Hyuuga compound, Neji left as well.

At her home Eiko walked inside of it with Tenten. All lights were out and she could hear the faint snoring of her siblings. They preferred night over daytime, but Eiko had grown used to the burning sun. "I think I have something that will look great on you Ten-chan." She whispered. Leading her friend into her room she looked throughout the messy chamber and finally discovered her closet. "It's-" Clothes were strewn across the room and more were added as Eiko dug through the closet "-here somewhere. Aha! Look, this purple color looks great on you!" She held up the light bathing suit, simple in its own way.

Once Tenten had gotten her bathing suit she made her way around her friend's room in hopes of finding a bag to dump their stuff in. "What do you think?" Eiko asked, turning around to show off her bathing suit. Her friend grinned when she saw it, however, Eiko felt a bit self conscious. "You don't think it's too much?" Tenten shook her head no. "It's perfect!" The girls departed to the kitchen in order to prepare food.

An hour later everyone met back. Nozomi was grumbling but Gai looked cheerful as ever. "Didn't I saw fifteen minutes?" She growled. Akako laughed and innocently said, "But sensei, it took you fifty minutes to get ready and speed back here." Nozomi looked at her student strangely, then glared at her for knowing what had really happened. All the genin wore a shirt over their bathing suits at least. Akako laughed when she saw Lee's. The green swim trunks were patterned with lotus. "Lee-kun I love your bathing suit!" She said between fits of giggles.

"Yours burns with the power of youth Aka-chan!" Now Eiko and Tenten broke into laughter. "Are we leaving then?" She asked her sensei once they'd calmed down. Nozomi shook her head and winked. "Just one more _lazy_person to come." They waited a little longer and by now the sun was beginning to go higher. It was probably around 10 o'clock. Walking over the hill Eiko could make out with her eyes a walking bushel of silver something. "Kakashi-sensei?!" She asked out loud when she realized it was no bushel but the copy ninja and his team. "And Sasuke-kun as well."

"Sakura-san!" Akako yelled when her friend has come down. She was wearing a thin black robe over a red bikini top and bottom. "Where's Naru-chan?" She asked once greetings were over. Sasuke did a 'hn' and replied, "Training with someone. Kakashi-sensei was supposed to train me as well but he decided to agree to going to the beach. We ended up not finding Naruto to ask if he wanted to come too." Akako nodded in understanding.

"Let's get going then!"

An hour later they arrived beside a waterfall that was dumping water into a clear, sparkling lake. "Sugoi!" Akako cried when they stopped. The trees provided the perfect shading and the water was cool, refreshing against the beating sun. "Well it's no beach but still…" Nozomi trailed off. Gai walked out from behind her carrying both his and her supplies. "The place shines with the power of youth!" He said, dumping the bags that carried. A large thud came when they met the ground.

Eiko held a hand up to shield her eyes. "It's no beach, correct. I think I like this place better though. Tenten, Sakura help me come set up a place for us!" She called out to her friend who stood next to Neji. The Hyuuga prodigy looked around with little interest. "It is pretty." Midori nearly scared Neji from sneaking up quietly. He held back all emotion and replied, "Hn."

The three girls finally finished setting up a small area. Multiple blankets were arranged on layers on the ground, providing cushion. Eiko had summoned a few umbrellas to lie around the area. When all was done she rolled over onto her back and groaned. "I'm so glad we have this break! A vacation was defiantly in order." She felt the blanket shift next to her as Sasuke sat down. Peeking open one eye she smirked, "I'm sure some people would prefer training to this though. Those weirdos that like to train and never relax…gosh I hate them!" Sasuke smirked next to her, catching on to what she was implying.

"Come Nozomi-san, let's swim in the water of youth!" Gai could be heard yelling. Everyone turned to see him standing on the top of the waterfall with a screaming Nozomi on his back. "LET ME DOWN YOU BIG OAF!" Eiko laughed and sat up as well. It was a funny site to see when he jumped off the waterfall with her sensei, and landing with a big splash.

"Yosh! Come Akako-chan!" Lee yelled. Akako had a confused look on her face. She screamed and Midori sat up quickly when she heard it. Lee ran into the water with the young girl, jumping in when they were in. "LEE YOU BETTER RUN!" Akako gurgled as she flailed in the water. A kunai appeared in her hand, glinting dangerously. "THAT'S NOT VERY YOUTHFUL AKAKO-CHAN!" Midori grunted at her sister's antics, then laid her head back down on the towel.

"Neji-kun…put some lotion on my back. If I burn someone is going to pay." Everyone within a one mile vicinity could feel the dark aura radiating from her when she spoke. Carefully Neji spread it across her back, blushing, and trying to touch as little of his childhood friend as possible. He was a refined type of person. "Sasuke-kun." Eiko sung out. "No." She pouted. "But you didn't let me finish!" Sasuke ignored her protest and grunted.

Growling, Eiko pulled the staff from behind her back. "White art: Black wings." She whispered. The wooden staff sent a white glow around her body until it stopped and she was left standing with black bat wings on her back. "Come on Sasuke-kun." She said joyously. The Uchiha felt a weird sensation tumble in his stomach as Eiko roughly grabbed him off the ground and took off into the air. He struggled at first but soon the two were flying above the waterfall. "Oops!" Eiko said, letting go and laughing. Sasuke fell down into the rushing water.

Doing a nose dive, and ridding of her wings, Eiko followed in after him. With a splash she landed into the lake. Below in the water the sound of the waterfall was muffled. She loved doing this anytime she went into the water. The site was completely different here, like looking into a whole other world! When breath came short to her, she began swimming to the surface.

Gasping she broke free of the water. For a while she stayed floating in the same spot, watching those around her. Nozomi-sensei and Kakashi-sensei were with Gai on a little rock out in the lake that stood just above the surface. Akako, Lee, and Tenten were in the more shallow water where they splashed at each other. For a moment Eiko was tempted to go over to her friends but decided not. Instead she swam over to the shallow waters and walked over to where Neji and Sasuke laid. Sasuke was still dripping from being dumped into the lake. Both boys had their eyes screwed tightly to block the sun's rays.

_Sasuke looks different from this angle…_Eiko thought. Her mind pondered for a while but she gave a little shriek when she saw Sasuke staring back at her. He shut his eyes tightly again. Lying down next to him Eiko looked up at the sun. The bright light hurt her eyes so she closed them as well. "I suppose everyone will be hungry soon Sasuke-kun." He merely grunted in response. "Let's set up the food Tenten and I made!" Happily she got up and retrieved a big scroll.

Unrolling the scroll, Eiko set it up across the blankets. Eventually it was fully unraveled and she summoned the food. Neji appeared a little hungry at that. "Food is ready!" Eiko called out to everyone. Nozomi sat up in her spot and rubbed her bare tummy. "Let's go eat then Kakashi-san."

Everyone sat around the scroll. "Who prepared all this?" Sakura asked. Tenten and Eiko smiled. "Tenten and I. We made some sashimi, it was tricky slicing all those fish really thin. And there is bunch of other stuff as well. Dig in!"

After a chorus of "Itadakimasu" they all dug in. "Yum!" Akako said. She immediately stole the platter of tempura and a small bottle of soy sauce, "I love you Eiko-chan!" She was glad that she had remembered her younger friend's favorite dish. Tempura had always been a favorite of hers especially with shrimp. The sun was still high in the sky when they finished eating. Lee threw himself back and burped. "Gomen, but I don't think I could eat another dish of nigiri whether it was life or death! The squid on top was good!" Tenten smiled at the compliment.

"THE FOOD BURNS WITH THE POWER OF YOUTH! GOOD JOB TENTEN AND EIKO!" Gai had tears streaming down his face. He continued to stuff more of the rice balls in his mouth as Lee was too full to finish them. Once all food was finished Eiko felt the familiar drowsiness of content wash over her. "Ah! I'm so glad we had a day to relax."

"That's good because tomorrow we have a mission and there will be no resting. The rest of the month you three better train!" Nozomi barked out. The scroll was rolled and the blankets were all folded. Eiko got rid of the umbrellas she had summoned. Finally they dumped everything on Gai. "This is training even on a day to relax!" He yelled. Lee looked at his sensei with a serious look before bringing out a book, "I feel this is another secret Gai-sensei has told me! I will do it too!" After scribbling in whatever, Lee ran over to Akako and Sakura, taking their stuff. Both sensei and genin took off.

"Those two are such an embarrassment." Tenten complained. Nozomi laughed at the young genin. Both her and Kakashi gathered up a few remaining items and jumped after them. Sakura, Neji, Midori, and Akako followed. Eiko turned to look at the sun setting, she glanced at Sasuke and saw him looking at it as well. A blush came over her features. Shrugging the strange tingle that appeared when she looked at him, she called out to him, "Come on Sasuke-kun!" He turned around and walked over to her silently. Smiling Eiko gripped his hand. He blushed when he realized what she was doing.

Eiko pulled back after planting a gentle kiss on his cheek. She had no idea what caused her to do so but shrugged nonetheless. "Let's go!" She tugged on his hand and took after the retreating figures of their teammates and friends. Before Sasuke began to follow her he grabbed his neck/shoulder area where the mark was. The slight wince of pain disappeared not even a second later. "Sasuke!" He heard Eiko yell his name again. He ran to catch up to the other genin.

"Today was relaxing, ne?"

"Hn."

XOXOXOXOXOXOX

Hope you liked it. As you can see p i couldn't get the pictures in, gomen. Review and stuff please.


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